School days went on as usual.
Shen Yi and Shen Xun spent their days slacking off and sleeping in class as a matter of routine.
The teachers always turned a blind eye to the two of them.
Recently, no one in the school had the free time or nerve to provoke them anymore.
After all, there was a prime example of what would happen.
Zhao Jiahao, who used to love taking the lead in finding fault with them, was expelled by the school not long ago for an absurd reason like stepping into the classroom with his left foot first.
The kids in the international class might have bad tempers, but they possessed a keen sense of perception cultivated since childhood. Once they realized someone was not to be messed with, they decisively backed off and played dumb like quails.
For a time, the siblings' campus life was unprecedentedly peaceful.
...
During the early construction phase of Hejing International School, Song Guanyan had invested quite a lot. This school lacked any profound historical heritage; rather, it was more like a meticulously crafted playground for the offspring of the rich and powerful.
Its internal educational resources, hardware facilities, and especially its security system were all top-notch.
Ordinary parents wishing to come and go as they pleased were essentially daydreaming.
Without a sufficiently weighty background, it was difficult to even freely pass through the school gates.
However, as one of the shareholders, Song Guanyan naturally possessed some privileges.
Because unexpectedly seeing a girl who looked remarkably like Song Sijun had kept him awake all night, he couldn't wait to contact the head of the elementary school's international class the very next day. After obtaining permission...
The man waited early in the office for news.
He wanted to see Shen Yi.
After all the students had arrived one after another, the homeroom teacher was about to leave with her laptop. Song Guanyan quickly stopped her, trying to keep his tone calm as he made a request, Teacher, could you call Shen Yi out for a moment? I'd like to have a brief chat with her.
The homeroom teacher naturally nodded and agreed to such a small matter.
However...
She hesitated and sized Song Guanyan up.
The homeroom teacher naturally knew this Mr. Song.
He was the father of Song Yi, a student in her class. But what confused her was why this father rushed to the school early in the morning and, instead of seeing his own daughter Song Yi, specifically asked for another child. What did that mean?
Meeting Song Guanyan's calm and profound gaze, the homeroom teacher could only suppress her doubts, gently tapping on the desk to signal the sleeping Shen Yi to wake up.
Shen Yi, someone is outside looking for you.
Shen Yi, still groggy from sleep, rubbed her eyes.
Hearing that someone was looking for her, she subconsciously assumed it was her bored third brother sending someone to keep an eye on her again.
Waiting at the classroom door, Song Guanyan took a deep breath.
He stared straight at the little girl in front of him, who was bleary-eyed with her hair sticking up messily.
This time, he could finally observe the child carefully face to face.
The contours of her facial features and the sense of familiarity continuously hit his brain.
Song Guanyan almost subconsciously wanted to hug her.
However, upon catching sight of the man's familiar face, Shen Yi jolted completely awake.
She cautiously took two steps back and looked at him wordlessly.
Ever since the parent-teacher meeting, Shen Yi had anticipated that she would soon see this scumbag father again.
She just really hadn't expected him to be this fast.
Was he in that much of a hurry?
The man tried to soften his voice, carrying a cautiousness that even he hadn't noticed:
Little one, your name is Shen Yi, right?
Shen Yi tilted her head, stared at him for two seconds, put on an impatient expression, and spat out unceremonious words:
Yeah, what do you want? Old geezer, I don't even know you.
The little girl's voice was inherently soft and cute, but the words she spat out were not so friendly.
Song Guanyan fell silent for two seconds; he had never seen a child speak so rudely.
He could see the girl's impatience towards him. Even though Song Guanyan wished he could immediately drag her off for a paternity test, it was only their first meeting, and he didn't want to scare her.
Little one, I mean no harm, he slowed his speech. It's just... seeing you reminds me of someone. I have a child who has been lost for many, many years...
You look very much like my son. Song Guanyan spoke earnestly. He crouched down to be at eye level with her, his attitude exceptionally gentle. He has an older sister. They are twins.
You and my son look far too alike.
That was why Song Guanyan wanted to see her.
Seeing that the child seemed to be growing increasingly wary of him, Song Guanyan took out his phone and showed her a photo.
Shen Yi stared at the photo for several full seconds.
Song Sijun looked miserable.
She didn't like recalling the past, but the photo in front of her inevitably made her compare it to the younger brother in her memory.
The boy in the photo was unusually emaciated. His bloodless lips were pressed tightly together, and his whole being was shrouded in a gloom and loneliness that didn't match his age.
In her past life, when she first returned home, her first impression of Song Sijun was that he was an arrogant little young master.
At that time, he still had a bit of baby fat on his face, and his personality was quite lively and cheerful.
Now, not to mention the fact that he didn't have an ounce of fat on his face.
He looked completely devoid of the will to live, his expression hollow.
His state looked very... bad.
Shen Yi couldn't help but stare at Song Guanyan.
How on earth had he raised Song Sijun to end up like this?
This question even temporarily overwhelmed her disgust and wariness toward Song Guanyan himself. Is this your son? He looks to be in a terrible state.
Song Guanyan gripped his phone tightly and whispered, I know...
He had found countless psychologists for Song Sijun, but they had almost no effect. The boy was like a flower about to wither, and Song Guanyan was completely helpless.
Shen Yi was also getting a bit annoyed.
She really didn't like looking back at the past.
But in her impression, the early Song Sijun had always been a naive, almost foolishly innocent child.
He liked Song Yi, who kept him company, but he was also very close to his biological sister, Shen Yi, often wavering between the two.
The balance was broken once at a banquet when he stumbled upon the scene of her being bullied. He completely broke down, trembling and holding her tightly as he cried for a long, long time.
When he cried, Shen Yi couldn't help but cry too.
In short, the scene of the siblings crying together back then looked incredibly tragic.
Sister, sister...
I didn't know, I didn't know they were bullying you, he cried, out of breath, resenting his young age for the first time. Wait... wait for me to grow up, okay?
When I grow up, I'll be able to protect you.
And from that day on, he stopped paying attention to anyone else.
He followed Shen Yi's every step. In the massive Song family household, the two children were like young beasts huddling together for warmth.
Shen Yi could feel his continuously crumbling emotions and pain due to what she was going through.
This gradually led the originally lively and cheerful boy to develop an increasingly twisted and sharp personality.
In this life, she had always thought that not seeing him would be the best choice.
After all, Song Sijun would live a better life without her.
